Charita Goshay: Remember purpose of McKinley’s monument

In 1906, as President William McKinley’s monument place began taking shape, none of the men who planned it, nor the stonemasons who built it, could possibly have envisioned Cantonians using the grand structure for anything other than grief and remembrance.

By Charita Goshay

Times Reporter

By Charita Goshay

Posted Jun. 24, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Jun 24, 2013 at 5:00 PM

By Charita Goshay

Posted Jun. 24, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Jun 24, 2013 at 5:00 PM

In 1906, as President William McKinley’s monument place began taking shape, none of the men who planned it, nor the stonemasons who built it, could possibly have envisioned Cantonians using the grand structure for anything other than grief and remembrance.

But time has a way of changing how society sees things. Because life is ever-changing, actions unthinkable in 1906 hardly garner a blip today.

This is not always a bad thing.

Despite nostalgic notions that life then was simpler and therefore better, the America of 2013 is an infinitely better place than the America of 1906, from economics to life expectancy to civil rights.

In 1906, entire classes of people had few rights and no say in their own country. When they challenged the status quo or tried to contribute, their efforts were resisted, dismissed and even punished.

The America of William McKinley staked its claim in Manifest Destiny, the notion that the United States had been given a divine right to usurp other people’s countries by virtue of our superiority.

RESPECT IS RELATIVE

Last week, controversy swirled around McKinley’s monument — a popular spot for exercise — when it was learned that some personal trainers were overstepping their boundaries by using the monument as a for-pay workout center.

Were Americans more respectful in 1906 than we are now?

That depends. Respect can be a relative term.

We’re still a very young country. Often, we show it.

But no, Cantonians in 1906 absolutely wouldn’t have used a president’s grave as a place to exercise. Had someone tried it, he very likely would have been arrested.

But people back then also didn’t wring their hands much about the possibility that the Italian immigrants building the monument might be overworked and underpaid.

TWO AMERICAS

In 1906, just as now, there were two Americas. It was the Gilded Age, when industrialists built tax-free fortunes by way of steel mills, oil refineries, meat plants and coal mines. Conditions in them were deadly. Workers organized for better pay and safer conditions at their peril.

Few cities can boast of a president. When we Cantonians neglect our history, it can foster disrespect, ignorance and even contempt.

It doesn’t take many steps from using a monument as a source of positive activity to neglecting it, then denigrating it. We’re already seeing this in national parks, where graffiti is on the rise because some people think it more important to “make their mark” than to leave them unmolested for others to enjoy. They completely miss the reason for their existence.

William McKinley was not a rock-star president like the Roosevelts, Lincoln, or Thomas Jefferson, but he did dedicate his life to public service, and lost that life in service to his country. Because his chapter is part of the American mosaic, it’s important to keep in mind that the McKinley monument is more than simply a set of steps.

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Let’s try to remember that was not built for our convenience. It’s a resting place of an American president.